This post from last year perfectly captures my heart right now. I known that Easter has come, but it hasn’t bloomed in me yet.
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There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens. Ecclesiastes 3:1
I live in Texas where seasons are difficult to teach to children because our weather is quite unpredictable. On Monday it was 80 and sunny. As the sun warmed my face, I could feel grass growing under my feet. Today it is 48 and rainy. All I can feel are my numb fingers.
I am an amateur gardener for sure. I love the reward of rich and varied colored blooms in the spring. I love the smell of fresh flowers and the buzz of bees around my flower beds. But, I’m not really good at any of it. So when my neighbor’s irises bloomed and mine had only a stalk, I got worried that I had done something wrong. He examined them closely and assured me that some plants just bloom later than others. 
Like every other part of the spiritual life, Easter is a season. While the calendar declares that Easter season has arrived and we have spent a Sunday declaring “He is risen!”, sometimes our souls move a little slower. Even when I am ready to leave behind the gloomy season of Lent with its fasting, and waiting, and searching, I find that true Easter blooms more slowly than the suddenness of a Sunday morning sunrise.
Easter is a season of joy and just like repentance, I can’t summon that on my own.
Joy is a gift of the Spirit.
Circumstances can prompt happiness in me. A good joke can elicit laughter. Politeness can summon a smile. But joy, true deep soul joy, is a gift from God.
If you find yourself still wrestling with the weight of Lent or life, don’t despair. The tomb is still empty. Your soul will bloom with joy in due time. Some hearts just bloom more slowly than others.
